Forbes Middle East has unveiled its highly-anticipated annual ranking of the most powerful businesswomen in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
Women in the MENA region are taking the helm of several key local and global companies, driving impact and transformation across various industries in 2025.
While the UAE topped the list for the third consecutive year, the Forbes Middle East 100 Most Powerful Businesswomen list for 2025 featured women from 32 sectors and 29 nationalities, with 8 Saudi women shining with their remarkable achievements.
100 Most Powerful Businesswomen 2025
The Forbes Middle East 100 Most Powerful Businesswomen 2025 list showcases diverse talent from across the region. The banking and financial services sector dominates the list with 25 leaders, followed by healthcare and technology, with 9 entries for each, and 5 in venture capital.
The UAE is leading the list with 46 entries based in the country, followed by 18 in Egypt and 9 in Saudi Arabia. In terms of nationality, Egyptians dominate the list with 18, and then come Emiratis with 11, Lebanese with 9 and Saudis with 8.
Hana Al Rostamani, Group CEO of the First Abu Dhabi Bank, the largest bank in the UAE, leads the list for the third year in a row. Al Rostamani featured for the fourth time on Forbes’ list of the World’s Most Powerful Women 2024, ranking 60 globally.
Saudi Women Rising under Vision 2030
Under the transformative Vision 2030, Saudi Arabia has made significant progress towards women empowerment and gender equality. This aligns with Vision 2030 goals of boosting female participation in the workforce, diversifying the national economy, and investing in new sectors.
As a result, Saudi women participation in the labor market has recorded a significant surge due to the leadership training and guidance initiative for women cadres. Moreover, 1,707 Saudi women have surged to key positions, surpassing Vision 2030 target of 1,000 women.
From 2017 to 2023, the share of women in the labor market jumped from 21.2% to 34%. Furthermore, the rate of women economic participation more than doubled, climbing from 17% to 35.5%. During the same period, the percentage of women in middle and senior administrative positions increased from 28.6% to 43.8%.
The initial goal of Vision 2030 was to increase women’s share in the workforce from 22% to 30%. However, after exceeding this target, the Kingdom has set an ambitious goal of raising female participation in the workforce to 40% by 2030.
Sarah Al-Suhaimi
Ranking 7 on the Forbes Middle East 100 Most Powerful Businesswomen, Sarah Al-Suhaimi is the Chairperson of the Saudi Tadawul Group.
She assumed this position in 2017, leading the group’s subsidiaries including the Saudi Exchange, the Securities Clearing Center Company (Muqassa), the Securities Depository Center (Edaa), and the Tadawul Advanced Solutions Company (WAMID).
As of the third quarter of 2024, the group had $2.5 billion in total assets. Its profits reached $133.6 million in the first 9 months of 2024, a 68% increase compared to 2023.
Sarah Al-Suhaimi is also the chair for Lazard Financial Advisory in MENA, and a board member of the stc Group and the Saudi Arabian Airlines Public Agency. Previously, she was the CEO of SNB Capital from 2014 until 2021.
Fouziyah Al-Jarallah
The CEO of the Al-Inma Medical Services Company, which owns and operates the Hayat National Hospitals Group, secured the 19th position on the Forbes list. Fouziyah Al-Jarallah also leads the allergy and immunology department at Hayat National Hospital.
Operating 6 branches, the group records over 1.5 million visits and more than 40,000 surgeries per year. In October 2024, the group introduced new diagnostic imaging technologies to three of its new HNH hospitals in Buraidah, Baysh, and Muhayil Aseer, after signing an agreement with GE HealthCare.
Al-Jarallah has been the vice chairperson of the National Committee of Private Hospitals in the Saudi Chamber of Commerce since 2017. She is also a member of the Ministry of Health’s Founding Executive Committee of managing human capital in the healthcare sector in Saudi Arabia.
Jomana R. Alrashid
The CEO of Saudi Research and Media Group (SRMG), Jomana R. Alrashid, came in the 25th position. Assuming this position since 2020, Alrashid achieved notable successes. In the first three quarters of 2024, SRMG generated $671 million in revenues and had total assets of $1.6 billion.
In December 2024, Billboard Arabia, a partnership between SRMG and Billboard, hosted the first edition of the Billboard Arabia Music Awards in Saudi Arabia.
Alrashid is also on the board of directors of Argaam and King Saud University, and the chairwoman of the Red Sea Film Foundation.
Enji Ahmed Al Ghazzawi
The Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Riyad Bank, Enji Ahmed Al Ghazzawi, was ranked 30 on the list. She has been assuming her role since 2022.
In November 2024, Riyad Bank collaborated with S&P Global to launch the Riyad Bank SME Index, focused on tracking and assessing the performance of the SME sector.
In another remarkable achievement, Riyad Bank introduced the first center for artificial intelligence (AI) technologies and services in the Saudi banking sector in July 2024. During the first nine months of 2024, Riyad Bank reported a net profit of $1.9 billion.
Ghada Al Jarbou
In the 34th position came the COO of Saudi Awwal Bank (SAB), Ghada Al Jarbou. Since 2001, Al Jarbou headed various departments before becoming the COO in 2020.
SAB reported $1.6 billion in net income and had total assets of $105.4 billion in the first three quarters of 2024. In July 2024, SAB signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with HSBC to accelerate financial innovation in line with the Saudi Vision 2030.
Ghada Al Jarbou is also a board member at Saudi Ground Services Company and General Organization for Social Insurance.
Amal Dokhan
Ranking 47 on the Forbes list, Amal Dokhan created the regional headquarters of 500 Global MENA in Saudi Arabia in 2021 and has since supported the Sanabil 500 MENA Seed Accelerator Fund. The 500 Global investments in the MENA region include Dailymealz, Drahim Holdings, Edfa3ly, Gathern, and Homzmart.
Dokhan assumed her current role in May 2024, after serving as the group’s general partner in MENA in June 2022. She was an angel investor for 14 startups in her portfolio.
Moreover, Amal Dokhan is a member of the board of the Saudi Venture Capital and Private Equity Association, and the Middle East Venture Capital Association.
Sara Abdulhadi
The CEO of the Gulf International Bank (GIB) in Bahrain, Sara Abdulhadi, ranked 76 on the list. Abdulhadi assumed this role in March 2024. She is also a non-executive director at GIB Asset Management.
Furthermore, Sara Abdulhadi was a deputy treasurer at Saudi Awwal Bank before joining the GIB in 2019 as a group chief investment and treasury officer.
Nejoud Al Mulaik
As the General Manager and Senior Director for Fitch Ratings in Saudi Arabia since 2022, Nejoud Al Mulaik came in the 95th position on the Forbes Middle East 100 Most Powerful Businesswomen.
Al Mulaik is also the interim general manager for Fitch Learning, a Fitch Group subsidiary, and a scout for HearstLab in Saudi Arabia. Before that, she was a director and executive board member for Fintech Saudi.
